Infatuation | Bucky Barnes

Chapter Eighty Nine

Catherine growled in frustration as she read through yet another file that gave her no answers. "You got anything on the Power Broker Sam?"

Sam shook his head. "Nothing."

"Okay. So, what do we have?" She asked.

"The Power Broker got their roots in Madripoor and obviously they're getting their hands on government secrets somehow." Bucky said. "And now they're working with Hydra. This is personal though. But why?"

"Well, maybe Hydra is mad that you two left. Bucky is valuable, no offense." Sam told them and Bucky glared at him.

"Offense taken." Bucky said.

"They're trying to rip us apart." Catherine came to the realization. "They think William finding out about the Winter Solider would cause a rift. They probably thought the whole attack at the hospital would cause me to be down for the count. This could leave Bucky somewhat vulnerable, emotionally at least. Then there's you, Sam. If they could separate you and Bucky, they might be able to get Bucky. I don't know what the Power Broker gains from having him."

"Maybe the Power Broker wants to use me?" Bucky suggested. "Was SHIELD ever able to pull any DNA from the blood on glass?"

Catherine shook her head. "No match yet. I kind of expected that. I have an idea. It's not ideal, but it may work."

Sam and Bucky both glanced at one another. Neither of them would admit it out loud, but they worried about her. They didn't want her to become obsessive with trying to find the Power Broker and end up doing something rash. She moved her laptop so they could see it.

"Hydra has always used a private server to communicate. They called it the коммуникатор (kommunikator) or Kom for short." She explained. "If Hydra is really trying to make a come back, there would be chatter all over the Kom."

"So, we just need to hack their server." Sam said.

"We can't really hack it, per say. You can only use Hydra programs on their computers. Unfortunately, all those were destroyed. However, there are some abandoned bases left. I have no idea if there are still computers there."

"Let me get this straight, you want to waltz into a former Hydra base?" Sam asked baffled. "Are you crazy?"

"She's a little crazy." Bucky said.

"I know Sam. You're looking at two former Hydra operatives though. We know those bases like the back of our hands." Catherine tried to convince him as she pulled up a map of Russia. "This is the base where I was kept. It's in Siberia. It's been abandoned for years. If we can get there, I think I can get into the server and see what's going on. Maybe even find out their objective."

Sam sighed. "I don't like the idea, but I trust your judgement."

Catherine hoped her intuition was right. If not, then the whole mission could end very badly. Especially if the base wasn't abandoned after all. The one thing that lingered in the back of her mind was the fact that she hadn't been to the base since she left Hydra. It was going to be difficult going back and reliving those horrific memories, she could do it though. She figured Bucky also had the same fears as her.

"You're being quiet." She observed as she tucked her laptop away.

Bucky walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her waist. "I'm just following the Director's orders."

Catherine snorted. "It's Assistant Director and I want your insight as well. Do you think it's too risky going back there?"

"I think," Bucky said kissing the tip of her nose, "that I trust you. I always have. I don't think you would want to go back to that hell hole just for shits and giggles."